Bathed Silver in Mercury
by FantasyandHistory
Summary: A determined princess, a lost sergeant, and a curious archaeologist. Brought together by a quest at least five-thousand years in the making... Doctor Elerie Taylor doesn't expect to be reunited with her ex-husband, nor does she expect that they will unleash the wrath of a five-thousand year old mummy!
1. The Past

_"The past cannot remain buried forever..."_

Somehow, it always finds a way of resurfacing...

This is the story of a determined princess, a lost sergeant, and a curious archaeologist. The princess, the sergeant, and the archaeologist. Brought together by a quest at least five-thousand years in the making...

When she receives word of the location of an antiquity long searched for, Doctor Elerie Taylor doesn't expect to be reunited with her ex-husband, the arrogant and stubborn Nick Morton. Nor does she expect that they'll unleash an ancient mummified princess on a quest, or that the mummy will possess Nick. Elerie always believed in myth, magic, and the supernatural, but never did she think she would be caught right at the centre of it...

 _Hello everyone! :) welcome to my latest story, based off of 'The Mummy' 2017! I hope you enjoy!_ I _do not own 'The Mummy' - all rights to Universal and the creators! I only own my character, Elerie. She kind of takes Jenny's place as Nick's companion throughout the story, though Jenny will still be present and I'll try to make Elerie different and not just Jenny's 'replacement'. I've given her and Nick more of a backstory/past connection, which maybe will help justify his end sacrifice a little more (I was kind of confused about the extent of his and Jenny's past relationship in the movie). Thanks!_


	2. Ahmanet's Threat

Ahmanet's Threat

 _"You stand between My Chosen and me."_

 _"How?"_

 _"You know how... You have curiosity. You wish to know what lies beyond the veil of death? The secrets of what I have seen?"_

 _"Yes."_

 _"And you will find out - when I kill you. You stand between My Chosen One and me, and you must go..."_


	3. I Elerie

Hello! Here's the first chapter, hope you enjoy! :)

I. Elerie

Doctor Elerie Taylor had always been drawn to the 'otherworldly' the beyond, had always felt its pull. She believed wholeheartedly in the supernatural and had been searching for answers her whole life.

A couple-hundred years ago she would have probably been called a witch and burned at the stake for her doings, investigating spells and rituals, visiting mystical sights. Her ex-husband, when they were still together, used to jokingly call her a witch as she 'meddled with magic'.

She'd always had this strange sensation when visiting places of the past - a strong feeling of presence other than the life around her. Who then, was it she sensed? _What_ was it? The dead? Perhaps. Either way she had always felt a strong connection to the ancients. It was hard to explain, but basically she summarized it as having some sort of reassurance that there was something more, something beyond.

Could she speak with ghosts? No, but she could sense them, their presence. That of civilizations and worlds long since passed. But despite possessing this 'gift', she still had many questions and not enough answers.

Following her divorce she hadn't gone out into the field much, leaving that to her colleagues, who would go conduct the excavations and digs and then bring the findings back to the museum to be examined - besides, she had always been a bit against removing the items from their hiding or burial places. They had been put there for a reason, why disrupt it?

She worked as an archaeologist through the Natural History Museum in London. Some may think that someone like her, so deeply engaged in the supernatural, myths, and magic, wouldn't be working at a museum of natural history, a place of scientific fact. But it was from there that she could conduct her investigations, alongside her friend and colleague Doctor Halsey.

The strange 'gift' of hers had helped lead them to some of the greatest findings of their careers - ancient manuscripts covered in spells and symbols, slabs of broken stone bearing carved rituals. All with connections to something beyond, and once fully examined Jenny would take them to her department of 'special collections'.

Now here they were, all the way in Iraq, searching for what could be their greatest find yet. Finding the lost tomb of an ancient cursed princess whose existence had tried to be erased would prove everything she believed, prove there really was something else.

Below them stretched seemingly endless desert. As the helicopter neared the golden ground, the uneasy feeling deep within the pit of Elerie's stomach swelled, something that always happened when she was following the trail of some supposedly enchanted antiquity. With it was the feeling that they were about to discover something truly great, but she had yet to discover what.

"Just think El," Jenny called over the roaring of the helicopter propeller. "This could be it."

At last they touched down by an abandoned, ransacked village, and the archaeologists emerged into the beating sun. The village had been surrounded by United States military personnel. She and Jenny approached the man who looked like he was in charge, standing with two of his soldiers.

When she saw them, Elerie stopped and stared. Her first thought was, _shit_.

Suddenly, the uneasy feeling just got a lot worse.

 _I hope you enjoyed this first chapter and introduction to my character! Thanks so much for reading! :)_


	4. II Elerie

Hello and welcome back! We get to meet Tom Cruise in this chapter, yay! ;)

II. Elerie

"What the hell are you doing here?" she demanded.

There was silence before the colonel said, "what's going on Sergeant?"

"Uh, nothing Sir," stuttered Nick. Then he regained composure. "I assure you there must be some mistake because I have not yet had the pleasure of meeting this woman, Miss..."

She smiled smugly. "Ah I see." She turned to the superior officer. "It seems that your sergeant here is too embarrassed to admit that we were married, once upon a time. Until I divorced him. Well I'm not too embarrassed, Nicolas." She turned on him again. "Disgusted? Yes. Regretful of our time together? Oh certainly. Embarrassed? No. But really just amazed at your ability to mimic all the qualities of genuine human intimacy, if only for, oh-" She paused to shrug. "-Fifteen seconds."

Even he didn't have anything to say to that. Vail snorted with laughter behind his hand and Jenny tried to stifle a laugh. The Colonel just shook his head at Nick.

Elerie smiled at her success. "And you want to know what I regret most? Ever falling for your so-called 'charm'."

Nick stared back at her for a moment before recovering and turning back to the colonel. "Alright, you got me. Sir, I admit, Ms. Morton-"

"That's Taylor to you, Doctor Taylor. Did you really think I was going to keep your name?"

"-Is right, we did spend many years happily married-"

"Oh shut up-"

"-Many long, satisfying years, including very long, satisfying, exhausting nights-"

"Oh spare us," she snapped.

"-And I assure you Sir I have only fond memories and a broken heart. As you can see Sir, Hell hath no fury." He gave her a smug smile.

She glared up at him. Oh, if looks could kill...

 _SMACK!_ The sound it made when her hand contacted with his cheek was so loud that Jenny, Vail, and the Colonel all nearly jumped back. Nick himself stumbled back, holding his now red and stinging cheek, jaw agape, again taken aback.

"Well what the hell are _you_ doing here?" he shot back, still holding his cheek.

"Doing my job."

"Colonel," stepped in Jenny, momentarily breaking up their bickering. "We're archaeologists from the Natural History Museum in London, and we have been instructed to conduct a dig for a tomb around here."

"Well you're in luck. These boys here just dropped an explosive on it."

"What?!"

Nick pointed to Vail. "He called in the airstrike." When his friend shot him a death glare, he continued. "Well what a coincidence! We're looking for a tomb too."

"Oh really? Another one you can raid?"

"Excuse me?"

"You're a tomb raider Nick."

"Well, with all due respect, so are you."

"Yes but I was trained and it's my actual job. And I do it so that we can further our understanding of human history and evolution, not so I can steal precious antiquities and sell them on the black market for profit."

Vail was nodding as she spoke. When Nick shot him a glare, he stopped. "Well you know as good as I do that to find treasure, you need a map. We just happen to have found a map-"

"You stole a map."

"What, no. We _found_ a map-"

"You're a thief Nick. Finding is your way of saying stealing."

"Now that is a great overstatement-"

"Well we have our own map." Heaving a sigh she turned away from Nick and to Vail, her face breaking out into a smile. "Chris, how are you?" She hugged him.

"Hey El. Well, I almost died, but I didn't, so I'm feeling pretty good."

"Good." She turned to the other young woman. "This is my partner, Doctor Jenny Halsey," she introduced.

Chris turned to the pretty blonde. "Hi, I'm Corporal Chris Vail-" While he continued to flirt with Jenny, Elerie and Nick continued to bicker.

"Great," muttered Chris.

"Oh my God-" The bickering was finally broken apart by Jenny's gasp. "Elerie come look at this."

Elerie, more than happy to turn her back on Nick, hurried to Jenny's side, peering down into the pit. "It's Egyptian," she cried.

"Yes." Jenny nodded excitedly.

"Oh, is that unusual?" asked Chris.

"We're in the Persian Gulf," Nick reminded him. "Egypt's miles away, so it's unusual."

"Oh you're so smart," sneered Elerie. He just smiled smugly.

"Colonel, this is a significant find. I need your men to secure this village," Jenny said, marching towards one of the supplies bags.

"We're not even supposed to be here," the colonel protested.

"It's our job to make sure anything of value stays out of enemy hands. We have no idea what could be down there. The contents of Tutankhamun's tomb alone were valued at six-hundred-and-fifty million pounds sterling."

At this, Nick and Chris exchanged a glance.

"Don't even think about it," threatened Elerie.

The colonel sighed. "Fine. You've got two hours, then we're moving out." He turned to Nick. "You're getting in the hole with them."

"Him?" cried Elerie, horror-struck.

"Me?" cried Nick. "But Sir, I-"

"Oh no," protested Elerie, stepping forward. "I will not have him ruin this excavation."

"Sergeant Morton you gear up, that's an order."

Elerie cursed under her breath.

"I'll be right here holding the rope Sarge," said Chris.

"Get in the damn hole Vail," ordered the Colonel.

Elerie sighed heavily. Great. Just Great. Fantastic. Brilliant. Wonderful.

It couldn't get worse than this, right? Worse than unexpectedly being reunited with your ex-husband who you hadn't seen in years in the most unlikely of places, and now being forced to work with him on what may be your biggest find yet.

Nope, nothing could be worse. Nothing.

 _Well, we'll see, especially once you find what's in that tomb ;) Haha! So, thoughts so far? Anybody else a huge fan of archaeology and Ancient Egypt? I hope you enjoyed, thanks so much for reading! :)_


	5. III Nick

Happy Halloween everyone! In celebration, here's another chapter of my 'The Mummy' story! Hope you enjoy!

III. Nick

A couple of hours ago he'd been staring down at the photograph, trying to drown out Vail's complaining. Now here she was before him, in the flesh.

Chris had been complaining as usual, about the heat, about Nick dragging him on another treasure hunt when they weren't even supposed to be here. Having had enough of his friend's constant complaints, Nick had taken the photo from his jacket pocket, unfolded it, and stared down at it, as he often did.

It always brought a smile to his face, seeing their smiling faces together. They looked so happy there, and it felt like a lifetime ago. It made him wonder what had ever gone wrong.

Now here she was, light red hair, freckled cheeks, Scottish accent and all. A sunhat shielded her face from the intense sun, and a pair of sunglasses hid her blue-green eyes. Her freckled face was a bright shade of pink, as it always was when she was upset. And evidently she was. He had to admit, he was just as shocked by their reunion and the circumstances of it as she was.

And now she was yelling at him. Scoffing at him. It stung when she said she'd changed her name back.

His thoughts flickered back to the photo, tucked in the front of his jacket, folded against his chest, almost weightless like any other photo, but also carrying with it an almost unbearable weight at the same time.

They had been in Mexico. It had been a vacation, while he was on leave from army duty. Naturally, she had wanted to go investigate some Aztec ruins.

He had awoken early in the morning to her bustling about the hotel room, all ready to go, gathering a few last-minute supplies. He'd groaned. "What time is it?"

"Time to get up." He could sense the excitement in her voice. God she was adorable when she was excited.

"But it's so early," he whined.

"I warned you last night that we'd be getting up early, and told you to go to bed early. But you continued to watch TV."

"They were playing a _Mission Impossible_ marathon!"

"Excuses excuses." She chuckled. "Come on Nicky, don't make me come and drag you out of bed."

"But it's so early," he repeated. He pulled the blankets up over his head.

He shrieked moments later when she came over and pulled the sheets off him. This caused her to burst out laughing.

"Time to get up." She giggled and threw his clothes at him, trying to prompt him to get out of his pajamas and dressed. Her eyes had had that adorable excitement shining in them. "Oh come on Nick! Where's your sense of adventure?"

 _Ellie and Nicky_ was written on the back corner of the photo. "Come on Vail. Where's your sense of adventure?" he'd said, cutting his friend off mid-complaint, refolding the photo and putting it back in his pocket. _Where's your sense of adventure..._

And it had led straight to her.

 _Haha see what I did there? ;) There's Nick's side of the reunion, hope you liked it! Thanks so much for reading!_


	6. IV Elerie

Hello everyone and welcome back! Here's chapter four!

IV. Elerie

"So," Nick said as they readied the equipment for the descent into the pit. "Still meddling with magic?"

"Oh stop mocking me."

He held up his hands in a 'have mercy' kind of way. "I just asked a question."

"Well in answer to your question, yes, I am. So watch out." Then she addressed both him and Vail. "Now gentlemen, minimal damage please. And don't, touch, anything.

With that the group began the descent. A face that had been carved into the wall silently screamed at them. A warning perhaps?

Nick grinned at Elerie as they lowered themselves down into the pit. "Just like old times."

"Sod off."

When they touched down and released the harnesses, Jenny clicked on a voice recorder. "This is Doctor Jennifer Halsey, and Doctor Elerie Taylor. We're in a large antechamber of some kind."

"Hey, is that mercury?"

Chris's comment caught the ladies' attention. Elerie peered into Nick's gloved hand where a small pool of silver formed from where it dripped from the ceiling. "The Ancient Egyptians believed it weakened evil spirits."

"Well now we know better. The stuff kills you."

"Yeah after it makes you crazy," added Chris.

"This is definitely a tomb," Jenny recorded, continuing onward. "There is mercury dripping from the ceiling into holes in the ground. Possibly interconnected - wait, it's a canal system, leading all the way to-" She hurried ahead until she drew to a sudden halt. The others caught up and stared.

"Oh wow," breathed Elerie.

Ahead was a large pool of silver mercury, surrounded by Anubis statues, chains holding something within the pool.

Jenny switched from voice recording to video recording. "Doctor Halsey here. We are in a large, man-made cavern adjoining the antechamber. Chiseled stairs lead down from a ledge, and there is a canal running between them, feeding a large ritual well at the base filled with mercury. There is a ritual barrier chain that surrounds the well, with a warning to intruders. To keep people out."

Elerie ran the beam of her flashlight across the well. "It's strange, there's no sign of any provisions made for someone's journey into the underworld." She flicked out her pocket knife and used it to chip away at the grime caking the hieroglyphs on the wall.

"It is strange," agreed Jenny, circling the well for a closer look. "Very strange. No canopic jars, no shabtis... To be buried in a place like this would be a fate worse than death." She held up the voice recorder again. "There are six watchers surrounding the well, all facing inward instead of out. Whatever's in there, those chains aren't for bringing it up-"

"They're for holding it down," finished Elerie. She swallowed hard. She'd had a strange feeling about this. "This isn't a tomb," she shook her head. "It's a prison."

 _I love that last line! So chilling! :) Hope you enjoyed thanks so much for reading!_


	7. V Elerie

Hello! :) Thank you for the reviews! Here's the next chapter!

V. Elerie

"This place is really starting to creep me out," mumbled Vail.

Jenny turned to the soldiers. "Notify the Colonel: we need to call in a team and extra equipment."

"Hey, whoa, whoa, he said two hours-"

"I know, but that's hardly enough. This is significant, there's so much to study here. We need a team with the proper equipment to conduct an excavation."

"Jenny," Elerie said, sounding distant. "I don't think that's such a good idea..."

"We don't have time," argued Vail. "Do you know how long it's going to take to fly a team all the way out here?"

"I'm not leaving until I've seen what's down there-"

The three jumped and Jenny and Vail's arguing ceased then when a gunshot rang out through the chamber - Nick. The bullet had severed the chains' holding, and with a creak they began to move.

"Nick!" cried Elerie, storming towards him. "I told you not to touch anything-" She stopped and stared, they all did. The chains were drawing something large and dark out of the pool.

Everyone gasped. A sarcophagus. Black, with a screaming carved face. Mercury dribbled off it's gruesome surface, like tears.

"Oh my God," gasped Jenny as the sarcophagus fully emerged.

"Problem solved," Nick said smugly, returning his gun to his belt.

A skittering sound caught their ears then, drawing their attention to the hundreds of spiders which had begun scurrying about the tomb.

Suddenly, Vail took his gun and started firing it at the spiders. The ladies cried out and ducked down for cover.

"Whoa, whoa! Cease fire Vail! Cease fire!" ordered Nick.

"One of them bit me!" screamed Vail.

"They're not even poisonous!"

"You don't know that!"

"Come on Vail-"

"CAN WE PLEASE LEAVE!?"

But Nick wasn't paying attention anymore. He was suddenly too entranced by the sarcophagus.

"What is wrong with you two?!" Elerie was yelling.

"You two," Jenny interjected, turning to the soldiers. "Tell the Colonel that we need to remove this now. Or you can tell him that he will have to explain why you left us behind."

* * *

Although Nick still seemed suddenly enamored by the sarcophagus, and Vail was too preoccupied with his spider bite, they did call in a helicopter which fully freed the sarcophagus from it's prison. The two soldiers and two archaeologists rode in another helicopter. Elerie could feel Nick staring at her for most of the journey, but she focused on the golden landscape stretching around them.

From there the sarcophagus was carried to an airbase and loaded onto a military plane.

"Where the hell did this come from?" remarked another soldier of the heavy sandstorm moving in. The wind whipped the sand around them, making the air heavy with it.

"Oh careful! Careful please!" Jenny called to the men loading the sarcophagus onto the plane. "This is five-thousand years old."

The sarcophagus was secured - carefully under Jenny's watchful eye - and everyone took a seat. Just as the mysterious sandstorm reached and engulfed them, they took flight. They were off.

 _Maybe Chris will turn into Spider-Man now that he got bitten by a spider ;) sorry, I had to! Kind of a brief chapter, but we learn more about Elerie and Nick in the next one :) Thanks so much for reading - hope you enjoyed!_


	8. VI Nick

Hey guys, welcome back! Thank you for the reviews! Glad to see you're enjoying this story so far! :) We learn more about Elerie and Nick's relationship in this chapter - enjoy!

VI. Nick

They were off, leaving the desert behind. Well, they'd gotten the treasure, not in the way he thought they would, but they'd gotten it. Sort of...

Across the plane Vail was lying down, and a few seats from him sat the blonde - Jamie? No, no that wasn't it. Jane? Nope, not that either. J... Jenny, Jenny! Jenny sat with a computer and headphones.

Elerie stood up on the seat to reach something from one of the upper compartments. As she was doing so her shirt rode up a little, revealing the intricate tattoo she had on her side. An old Celtic pagan symbol, she'd said. He used to like tracing the intricate likes gently with the tip of his finger, making her giggle.

He recalled one such time where she was lying on the bed on her side, notes spread around her, reading through them. He'd come to lay beside her, pushing up her shirt where it had ridden up some to reveal her tattoo. He'd begun to trace the swirling, interconnecting lines.

"Nick."

"Hmm?"

"I'm trying to work."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. You're being distracting..." She was trying to sound serious, but he could tell she had a smile on her lips, shaping her words.

"Am I?" He continued to trace the lines, adding some kisses to her neck.

"Yes - ah, stop that! It tickles!" She giggled and smacked his hand away, pushing her shirt back down to conceal the marking. He'd chuckled at her blushing.

He smiled at the memory. "Need some help?" he offered.

"Oh aren't you the gentleman." She retrieved what she needed and sat back down. "No."

"You're welcome by the way."

"Oh, how's that?"

"I saved your, whatever it is."

"Well it was safely hidden for five-thousand years before you dropped a Hellfire missile on it."

"Well you may have never found it otherwise. Again, you're welcome."

She scoffed and shook her head. "Do you have any idea what this is?" She gestured to the sarcophagus. "The significance of it? An Egyptian sarcophagus imprisoned in a tomb in Mesopotamia. Whoever it is, someone went to great lengths to keep it hidden."

"Why'd you tell Greenway and the others fifteen seconds? It was not fifteen seconds - it was _never_ fifteen seconds."

There was a brief pause before she spoke. "Because, whatever 'it' was, and however long 'it' lasted, it wasn't real, in the end."

"I think you're being a bit harsh-"

"Well what was I supposed to tell them? That I'm the proud ex-wife of a thief? A con-man? A liar?"

"Ellie, I never lied to you about my feelings-"

She ignored the use of his nickname for her. "You stole from me. You used me."

Now it was his turn to scoff. "I did not 'use' you."

"You did, you used my skills to find precious antiquities and then you would take them and sell them."

There was another pause before he said, "but I didn't lie."

She shook her head. "Do you ever think of anyone but yourself?"

"Come on Ellie-"

"Stop calling me that."

"Come on. We used to have fun together, we were a team."

She scoffed sharply. "A team? Really? We were never a team." Again she looked to the sarcophagus. "This is my life's work, and you wanted to steal it. How much do you think that's worth on the black market?" With that, she got up and stalked over to the other side of the plane to sit with Jenny.

 _There's some more backstory for them, hope you like it! As always, thanks so much for reading! :)_


	9. VII Elerie

Hey! Thank you for the reviews! :) Hope you enjoy this chapter!

VII. Elerie

"Hey Jen, you want to start that preliminary analysis?" She peered down at the screaming face of the sarcophagus.

She felt like screaming herself right now. Three years. Three years and no word, nothing. Why now, of all times, did he have to show up again? And right in the middle of their biggest find yet?

A team he'd called them, a team! She felt like snorting at this. A team, really? What the hell Nick?

Jenny agreed and the ladies readied the equipment. Good, something to take her mind off of the unbelievably infuriating man sitting just a few seats away, watching her.

Jenny turned on the voice recorder again, just like in the tomb, and they knelt before the grand, gruesome sarcophagus.

"This is Doctor Jennifer Halsey and Doctor Elerie Taylor, conducting a preliminary analysis of an Egyptian sarcophagus discovered in the Nineveh province, norther Iraq. The hieroglyphs on the outside of the sarcophagus are definitely New Kingdom. It appears that the wife of King Menehptre died in childbirth, leaving a sole heir to the throne. A girl, called Ahmanet." The archaeologists exchanged an excited glance.

When the preliminary analysis was complete, Jenny returned to her computer. Elerie sat in between her and Chris, who had been surprisingly quiet throughout this whole trip. She looked over at him and frowned. He seemed to be shaking, trembling.

"Chris?" She scooted closer to him. "Chris are you alright-" He didn't look so good, his skin pale and sweaty. She reached out to gently touch his arm.

The next thing she knew, he shot up and grabbed her throat in an iron grip.

 _It's super short I know, but I thought that was a good place to end - the next one will be longer! Thanks so much for reading! :)_


	10. VIII Nick

Hello there! Here's the next chapter - there's some action in this one!

VIII. Nick

 _"...It appears that the wife of King Menehptre died in childbirth, leaving a sole heir to the throne. A girl, called Ahmanet." Ahmanet_...

Suddenly, Nick gasped and lurched forward. No one other than him seemed to notice though. What was up with him?

With Vail asleep and Ellie making it clear that she did not want to talk with him, he'd tried talking with Jenny.

"We haven't really met yet," he said, sitting down beside her. "I'm Nick."

"Oh I know all about you Mr. Morton." The blonde didn't look up from her laptop.

"Oh, so she did talk about me?"

"Oh yes."

"All the good stuff?"

Now she looked at him. "Oh yes." She didn't try to hide any sarcasm.

Their conversation hadn't lasted long, and ended in him retreating back to his lone seat across the plane. Now there he sat, staring at the coffin again. Why was he so interested in it all of a sudden? There was something about it...

Everything that happened next was a blur.

Elerie gave a sort of gasp-whimper/stifled-scream when Chris shot to his feet and seized her by the throat. This action caused her feet to lift off the ground.

"Oh my God-" Jenny practically threw down her equipment and jumped to her feet as well.

"Whoa - Vail, what the hell are you doing?" Nick cried, watching his ex-wife dangle by the neck in the grasp of his friend.

"C-Chris," Elerie choked out. She kicked her legs and squirmed, but it was no use.

"Corporal Vail what in the living hell do you think you're doing?" The colonel stormed towards Vail, who, just as he reached him, took the knife from his belt, and stabbed the colonel. Once. Twice. Elerie screamed as she watched the Colonel's now lifeless body collapse to the ground, or the best she could scream with a hand clamped around her throat.

Now the other soldiers on the plane, seeing their commander dead, drew their weapons, pointing them at Vail, and consequently Elerie.

"Hey! Hey! Don't shoot! Don't shoot!" yelled Nick, jumping within the line of fire, defending his friend and ex-wife. "Please wait!" As a soldier came closer, Nick snatched his gun from him. "Okay back off!"

"Stop! Do not shoot!" yelled Jenny, now standing in between him and the soldiers. "This is a pressurized aircraft!"

Now Vail held Elerie's neck in one hand, and the blood-soakedknife in the other. If anyone would be his next target for using the knife, it would be her. Nick found that he really didn't have a choice.

 _Bang!_ The gunshot rang throughout the confined space, the bullet burying itself in Vail's shoulder. This caused him to drop Elerie, who screamed, because of both being dropped and the gunshot.

As Vail recovered Elerie scrambled away, Nick helping her to her feet and drawing her close to him with an arm around her waist, she being too shocked to protest. Now her own hand held her neck where it still felt as though she were being choked.

"Whoa, hey-" Nick stepped away just as Vail swiped at him with the knife. "Vail, what are you doing?" But Vail only continued to approach, zombie-like, holding the knife out. His gaze was distant and his breathing was a heavy wheezing.

"Vail? Vail stop. Stop! Put the knife down."

"Chris?" Now he headed for Elerie again, the knife level with her chest. The group had backed up as far as they could go.

 _Bang!_ Both Elerie and Jenny jumped and cried out as another bullet from Nick's gun hit Vail in the shoulder again. This didn't seem to faze him though, and he continued to advance.

Nick fired again, this one in the chest, and Vail fell to the floor, dead.

Silence. _Bang!_ Nick shot him once more. Elerie let out a whimper and clung to his arm. He looked pale and dazed himself. He'd just shot his best friend.

"Oh Chris," she whispered shakily.

"I-I'm sorry," Nick managed, passing the gun back to the soldier.

One episode of chaos led to the next. They barely had time to recover from that whole ordeal and Nick didn't even get the chance to check to make sure Ellie was alright before the plane gave a great lurch.

Peering out the window, Nick saw that the wing was damaged. He burst into the cockpit. "What's happening?" he demanded.

"We don't know. Take a seat," one of the pilots ordered as they tried to regain control of the plane.

That was when Nick noticed something ahead of them in the sky, drawing closer. A great, dark cloud...

Birds! The great flock came smashing through the windshield, attacking the pilots. Nick stumbled back into the main cabin to avoid being hit himself just as everyone's feet were swept out from beneath them - gravity within the plane was gone, leaving everyone floating around the cabin.

He heard a familiar cry and caught Ellie as she flew towards him. She gripped his jacket tightly and the two clung to each other amidst the ensuing chaos.

Nick searched frantically but finally located the parachutes. And good thing too, for the plane gave a lurch as one of the wings ripped off, tearing a giant hole in the side which sucked everything that wasn't held down out.

"Parachutes!" he hollered.

"Jenny go!" screamed Elerie.

Her colleague obeyed and took the first parachute, managing to escape the chaos. Finally, Nick managed to grab hold of the other parachute. The only remaining parachute. "Take it!" He shoved it into Ellie's hands.

"No you take it!" She shoved it back.

"No, you-" He shoved it back to her and helped secure it on her back.

"Uh, ah! I don't know how to do this!"

"Hey, hey, Ellie, you can do this, you can do this! You're going to be fine!"

She grasped his arm, never wanting to let go, as the plane continued to nose-dive spiral down.

His hand clasped tightly over hers holding the string. She stared at him, wide-eyed. He gave a nod, letting go of her hand. Gripping the string tightly she gave a tug, and the chute opened, sending her flying out of the plane.

She was safe. Thank God she was safe. Nick grasped the plane wall and closed his eyes, waiting for the crash.

 _Cliffhanger - sort of! ;) Haha thanks so much for reading, hope you enjoyed!_


	11. IX Elerie

Hello! Here's the post-crash chapter! And thank you so much for the reviews! :)

IX. Elerie

What happened on that plane?

She had been checked over by a doctor - a few bumps and bruises, but nothing serious. No serious physical injuries.

She stared down at the photograph in her hand. It was folded, and a little torn around the edges - well-loved.

"Ms. Taylor," the doctor had said, holding out a little piece of paper. "I found this tucked in the inner pocket of Sergeant Morton's jacket."

Taking and unfolding it she had found their smiling faces in a photograph from their trip to Mexico when Nick had been on leave. _Ellie and Nicky_ was written on the back. Nick's writing.

 _Oh Nick..._ She didn't know whether to laugh or smile or burst into tears at the photo itself, the memories it revived, ones she'd tried to trap away, or the knowledge that he'd carried this close to him _._

What happened on that plane?

It had all happened so fast. First she had nearly been strangled by her friend, then she had watched her friend be shot dead by her ex-husband, his best friend, and then the whole plane had gone crashing down, and Nick had given her the last parachute... Saved her life.

Nick. Oh Nick...

"You okay?" Jenny appeared and sat beside her, breaking into her thoughts. She nodded distantly. "Oh El, I'm so sorry." Jenny put a comforting arm around her friend and colleague.

"Thanks Jen. I'm just - shaken, that's all." She shook her head. Physically she may be fine, but mentally - the whole event on the plane seemed to be seared into her mind, leaving her unable to stop witnessing it. "Maybe I should see someone, you know, like a therapist..."

"I know a specialist, in London..."

"I don't know Jen, I think I'm just saying things, you know?" Her words trailed off and she rubbed her eyes.

What happened on that plane?

"The doctor's asking for our help identifying the bodies. Do you think you're up to it?" Elerie slowly nodded. "El, you don't have to, I can do it."

"N-no, I-I can do it."

Holding tightly onto Jenny's hand, the two archaeologists entered the morgue, accompanied by the doctor and nurse.

"Oh my God-"

"Oh!" Both Jenny and the nurse turned away, covering their eyes. The doctor turned away as well. Elerie only stared, eyes wide and jaw dropped.

At first she thought she must just be hallucinating. After everything, it would make sense. But no. There, in the centre of the morgue, stood Nick, very much alive.

"N-Nick?" she managed to squeak.

"Ellie!" He appeared just as startled. "What's happening?"

"Y-you're alive." She spoke in a voice barely above a whisper.

"Yeah. What's-"

"You're here..."

"W-what's going on?"

"You're naked-" Her own blurting of it made her realize that she was still staring, and finally pulled her gaze away from the very much exposed Nick.

"What - oh!" Suddenly realizing this too, Nick covered himself with his hands the best he could and scooted behind a table, his bare feet squeaking on the morgue floor.

"What's happening? Where am I?" he asked, looking around. "Who's in charge here?" But everyone was too shocked to answer.

Finally, all eyes turned to the doctor who slowly raised his hand, looking terribly embarrassed. "I, um, I-I'm afraid there's been a horrible mistake..."

 _Haha! Yay, he's alive! Also, we'll get some more flashbacks of Ellie and Nick soon! Thanks so much for reading, hope you enjoyed! :)_


	12. X Elerie

Hello! Thank you for the reviews! :) Here's the next chapter!

X. Elerie

Nick was downing drink after drink, Elerie sitting across from him in a bustling pub, staring at him, too shocked to tell him to slow down.

"What?" he asked, as if he had not just woken up in a morgue after being confirmed dead.

"How did you get out of that plane?" Elerie demanded, not blinking. "There's not a single scratch on your body Nick, and you should be dead, no one could have survived that crash." Nick shrugged, holding a drink in each hand, looking impressed with himself. Of course he would take it as a compliment.

Although she tried to contain it, she couldn't, and embarrassingly enough, a sob escaped her lips, one that had been threatening to break free ever since the crash. It was a mix of shock, relief, sadness, anger, confusion...

Now he looked startled. "Sorry," she said, desperately wiping away at her tears. "It's just, you're alive, and I don't know how. I don't know what's going on." She wiped at her eyes again and swallowed back another sob.

"Hey-" He reached out and placed his hand over hers on the table. She stared down at their hands for a moment before sliding hers away.

She sighed. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"Saving my life back there."

"You would have done the same for me. Hell, you almost did."

"Yeah."

"But I couldn't let you do that."

"And now here we are." She nodded a little. There was a pause as she reached into her jacket pocket and withdrew something. "Nick, they found this in the pocket of your jacket and gave it to me. But since you're here now-" She trailed off and instead slid the item across the table.

The photograph. He stared down at it. "I thought I lost it in the crash." He reached out to slide it closer to himself, ensuring their fingers brushed. She quickly drew her hand away.

Again, she sighed. "Listen, Nick. I think you should know something. As you know, I dabble a little in ancient rituals and magic. I became an archaeologist to try and discover more about the beyond if you will and how the ancients saw it - some say ancient civilizations were more developed than we are today. So I search for antiquities with supposed supernatural powers or a connection to them. I had a bad feeling going into that tomb-"

"I thought that's cause I was with you."

"Just listen!" She paused to shake her head. "Jenny and I work with a group of archaeologists, and well we've developed this theory: that an Egyptian princess had been erased from the history books - deliberately. We've been searching for something called the Dagger of Set, a ceremonial knife with a large jewel at the hilt. Now Set is the Egyptian God of-"

"God of Death," he finished.

She paused, surprised. "Yes. How did you-"

"You were always studying this stuff. You were always working."

"I wasn't _always_ working," she defended. He shrugged. She sighed and continued. "Legend has it that the dagger and stone, together, have the power to give Set physical form. We're convinced it was hidden here in Europe, stolen by Crusaders centuries ago. Jenny and I found reference to it in a manuscript written by a Crusader knight himself, and he suggested that the dagger was broken apart, separated from the stone, and we believe that the stone was buried with this knight, somewhere here in England. A massive Crusader tomb was recently discovered under London, and that tomb is what led us to Ahmanet."

"Ahmanet," he repeated in a whisper.

"Yes."

"You think the stone is buried somewhere in that tomb."

She nodded. "We believe that she's the princess in the legend. The hieroglyphs said she was destined to be Egypt's next queen, but then her birthright was taken from her. This led her down a dark path, one that had to be stopped."

"What'd she do?"

"She murdered her father, along with his wife and child, and made some sort of pact with Set. And then when the tomb turned out to be a prison, and then with the spiders, and birds, and sandstorm - something's happening, and I think it's all connected. And you're alive, and I don't know how." She trailed off, shaking her head. "I think that, somehow, we've angered the gods."

He stared back at her for a moment before smirking a little. She'd seen that look from him many times before, usually whenever she would babble on about this sort of thing. He used to do it jokingly to tease her.

"Oh don't look at me like that! This is serious!"

"Would you excuse me, I'll be right back." Nick slid out of his seat and disappeared into the restroom. She sighed.

Jenny came over from where she had been sitting at the counter.

"He won't speak to me, no surprise though, for he never did, even when we were at our closest." Elerie scoffed. "If we even were close. He was always secretive."

"It's so strange," marveled Jenny.

Elerie took one of Nick's still half-full drinks and swirled it around. "Yeah. It doesn't make any sense. For him to have survived that crash-" She shook her head. "It's impossible." She looked to her partner. "Right?"

 _Haha I like that scene in the pub :) Hope you guys enjoyed thanks so much for reading! And sorry for the delay - I didn't realize how long it had been since I updated this story! Thanks for sticking with me! Oh and there's another Ellie and Nick flashback in the next chapter :)_


	13. XI Elerie

Thank you so much for the reviews! :) So glad you guys are enjoying this story!

XI. Elerie

Jenny excused herself, saying she had to make a phone call. With that she too disappeared, leaving Elerie alone.

She sighed. Maybe Nick was right, and she was just crazy. He hadn't said it, but the look he'd given her was enough. No, no why was she thinking that, and why did she care at all what he thought?

It was kind of funny, in a way, they'd met at a pub not unlike this one, but in London. She didn't know what made her think of this suddenly, but she did. That had been ten years ago - they'd met, gotten married three years later, were married for four years, and now divorced for three. A lot had happened in those ten years.

The pub had actually been surprisingly quiet for a Saturday night, especially considering the downpour outside. She had been in the middle of working towards her Ph.D., and her cousin had somehow managed to convince her to take a break from her studies and join her and her fiancé at a local pub.

An hour later she'd had enough, but now felt responsible for her now drunken friends, so she went up to the bar and took a seat on one of the stools.

"One special please," she told the bartender. Then she buried her face in her hands and exhaled a heavy sigh.

"Long day?"

She looked up at the sudden voice to find that whoever it was had definitely been speaking to her. A man sat a couple of stools down from her, drink in hand. He was American.

She nodded over to the booth she had been sitting at. "See the couple over there snogging in the corner? That's my cousin and her fiancé."

"Ah." He nodded and took a sip of his drink. "Third-wheel?"

"I guess so. It was supposed to be a double date - her idea, not mine - but he never showed. I could be back home studying myths and magic in Medieval Europe and instead I'm stuck here waiting for some asshole and keeping an eye on my drunken friends."

"Sounds great."

"You have no idea." The bartender placed her drink down before her. "Thank you."

"Cheers." The man held up his drink. She touched her glass to his. There was a pause as both took a drink.

"How about you?" she asked. "What brings you here to this English pub on a blustery night?"

"I'm in the U.S. military, and I have a few days here before being shipped out the rest of the way. This is my first night. Know any good stuff to do?"

"Well there's always the classics, like Tower of London, The Globe Theatre, Buckingham Palace. But I also know a whole list of castles and supposedly haunted and/or magical places, if that's of any interest."

"Huh, interesting. So you're into that stuff, huh?"

"Yeah it's always been an interest of mine. I'm actually studying it - well, sort of, on top of being an archaeologist."

"Oh, so you're Doctor..."

She chuckled. "You flatter me Sir. Not Doctor yet, not until I get my Ph.D., which I'm actually working on right now. What, you don't believe in that sort of thing?"

"Well..." He gave a little shrug.

"Oh come on, where's your sense of adventure?" The first of many times she would say that to him, unbeknownst to them at the time.

She had then launched into explaining her love for all that stuff. It was when she'd been talking for almost ten solid minutes that she realized she was blabbing. She cut herself off and smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, don't get me started. I could talk about this for hours."

"No, no, please continue," he said. "I like your enthusiasm."

They ended up talking for hours. She learned that his name was Nick Morton and that he was hoping to soon be promoted to Sergeant. They even ended up splitting a dessert. By the end of the night, she was glad that what's-his-name hadn't shown up for the double-date.

And the best part? He had actually listened to every word she said, really listened.

"Will I ever see you again?" She had to ask.

He smiled and nodded. "Yeah."

Six months later she was finally Doctor Taylor, and was giving a talk in Glasgow at the university about old Celtic myths and magic. She had been surprised to say the least when after the talk one of the audience members waited around until she was about to leave to come talk to her.

He'd had a bouquet of flowers with him. "Congratulations, Doctor Taylor." He was on leave back in the UK and had heard about a talk being given by a certain Doctor Taylor. She had been very touched to say the least and they'd gone out in celebration afterwards, of her becoming Doctor, and he becoming Sergeant. The start of something special.

Funny how something like that could end so quickly, there one moment, gone the next. Love was funny that way.

 _I feel like that's a good note to end on :) thanks so much for reading, hope you enjoyed and hope you liked this flashback! And don't worry, we'll get to see Ahmanet herself very soon!_


	14. XII Nick and Elerie

Hello! Here's the next chapter for you - hope you enjoy! Thanks!

XII. Nick and Elerie

He stumbled into the restroom, peering around corners. It couldn't really be Vail's ghost he kept seeing, could it? His friend back from the dead to haunt him?

But there he was, his skin colourless, his eyes lifeless.

"El looks good," he said.

Nick shook his head. "This can't be happening..."

"I mean really great."

"Okay, just stop-"

"Do you think I ever had a chance with her friend?"

"What?"

"I mean how did you ever manage to mess that up?"

"T-this is all in my head, it's all in my head..."

"No, it's not," Vail insisted. "I'm here, you're here. You shot me Nick. Four times!"

"You scared me and I panicked!"

"Four times!"

"You stabbed Colonel Greenway! Then you came after me! You even went after Ellie - you were strangling her!"

"You told her yet?"

"What?"

"That you're still crazy for her? Dude, it's so obvious."

Nick was still baffled. "Okay, I'm sorry, okay?"

"Not okay. I'm cursed Nick, and so are you."

"Cursed? W-what do you mean cursed?"

Meanwhile, Elerie still sat at their table, pondering, well, everything.

A waitress came by. "Finished with those?" She nodded to the assortment of half-full, full, and empty drink glasses.

"Oh, they're not mine," she insisted. "But yes, I think you'd better take them away. Thank you."

A few minutes later Elerie herself headed to the washroom. "Gah!" She jumped and gave a startled cry as soon as she opened the door. "What are you doing in here?! This is the ladies' room!"

Nick scurried over. "Just a second, just give me a minute, thanks." He slammed the door closed.

"Oi!" She pounded on the door but he must have been holding it closed. "Nick! Go to your own bloody loo!"

A few moments later the door opened and he left, brushing right past her and out of the pub into the alley. He didn't look well.

She followed him outside into the night, jumping when he spun around to face her.

"You're right!" he cried, pointing at her. "You're right-"

"Nick, what-"

"We _have_ angered the gods-"

"Nick, calm down-"

"I saw her, the chick, in the box-"

"Ahmanet."

"That one. He said-"

"Who said what?"

"Vail."

"Vail?"

"Yeah Vail. The coffin we found-"

"Sarcophagus," she corrected.

"Whatever. There was that writing on it-"

"Hieroglyphics-"

"Ellie, with all due respect, cute as I may find it, I'm not interested in your archaeological jargon right now. The writing on the box that we took out of the hole-"

She just couldn't help herself. "You mean the hieroglyphs on the sarcophagus that we excavated from the tomb."

"Damn it Ellie! There was something about a curse, wasn't there? Wasn't there?" he pressed.

"Okay, Nick, you've got to calm down. You've had a concussion, and toxic exposure, and you just had a shit ton to drink. I say you need to rest-"

"But how does that explain that I know that 'Setepa-i' means 'my chosen'?"

She stared at him. "Setepa-i? That's Ancient Egyptian-"

"Ancient Egyptian." Their words overlapped. "So how do I know that?"

"Uh, you... You've been in the Middle East for years. Maybe you heard it and forgot. Or maybe you recalled it from my work..."

"Why are you backing off from this? You were just talking a few minutes ago about angering the gods. I am telling you, she is real."

"Nick, you're starting to scare me-" There was a pause.

"You know, I-I think you're right, I think this is all in my head. It's ridiculous." He gave a short laugh. "I think we should find the box-coffin thing, open it up, look inside, and when I see a three-thousand-year-old prune in there, no more curse."

"Nick, you don't need a sarcophagus, you need a doctor-"

"Oh come on Ellie, don't tell me you don't want to see it too. You're life's work. Come on, where's your sense of adventure?"

 _Thanks so much for all the reads! You guys are awesome! :)_


	15. XIII Jenny

Hello! Here's the next chapter for you - it's really short but I'll also post the next one :)

XIII. Jenny

The phone line rang once. Twice. Three times. Four...

The line clicked in from the other end. "Identify," came the voice from the other end.

"It's Jenny, get me Henry," she ordered in a low voice.

There was a brief pause as the phone line shifted.

"Jennifer," came Henry's calm voice moments later. It always surprised her how calm he always seemed to be.

She kept her voice low, hoping he could hear her over the background pub noise. "This may be a far more significant problem than we imagined. Something's definitely wrong with him."

"Hmm." He sounded thoughtful. "Bring the soldier to London. And what about Ms. Taylor?"

"She's worried about him."

"Does she suspect anything?"

"No."

"Good. Make sure she comes to London as well. Do not discuss anything further with them."

Jenny sighed. "Will do."

The line went dead. Jenny hung up the phone as well and sighed. She hated lying to her friend but... Elerie would know the truth soon enough.

With that Jenny headed back over to the table where the once-couple had been sitting, almost expecting to find them yelling at each other in an argument.

But Elerie and Nick were gone.

 _Haha now Jenny's like "I turn my back for one second and they're gone!" Really short chapter I know, but I wanted to have something from Jenny's perspective. We'll have something from Ahmanet's perspective later too :) thanks so much for reading, hope you enjoyed!_


	16. XIV Elerie

Here it is, just as promised! :) Enjoy!

XIV. Elerie

They hailed a cab and both climbed into the back seat.

"Waverley Abbey please," Elerie told the driver.

"Isn't that where that big plane crash just happened?" he questioned.

"Uh, we work there, part of the clean-up crew," she quickly answered.

He shrugged and started driving.

The drive began in silence, both Elerie and Nick staring out their respective windows. He broke the silence. "So, you seeing anyone?"

A pause. "Maybe."

"Oh." He nodded. "So you are?"

"Maybe."

"So you're not?"

" _Maybe_. Why, does it matter either way?"

"No... I'm just curious. I just asked."

Another pause. "No, I'm not. There, happy? You have someone you're seeing?"

"Maybe." She rolled her eyes. "No, actually, I don't. Haven't for the past three years."

"Implying?"

He didn't answer, and they spent the rest of the drive in silence.

"Oh God." Elerie finally said. Looking out the window, they could see the crash site up ahead. What a mess.

The driver dropped them off in front of the Abbey and pulled away, leaving them there.

"You know I really don't think we're supposed to be here," she said. Tape surrounded the perimeter of the church and there were searchlights up ahead. A distant radio could be heard.

She hesitated when Nick climbed under the tape before reluctantly following. He headed in the direction of the church.

"Nick, it's this way," she hissed, nodding to the crash site. "Nick-"

"We're in the right place," was all he said.

"Nick - Nick!" But he didn't listen and instead headed into the church. Of course he didn't listen to her - he never did. Why did she even try?

 _Stupid Nick_. She trudged through the wreckage alone, hugging her arms tightly around herself - it was pretty eerie out here.

Suddenly, she jumped when she heard a cut-of- cry, that sounded like Nick. It was coming from inside the Abbey. She cautiously made her way inside.

Six heads turned to look at her. She stood still as a statue. You would too if you walked into a room to see your ex-husband being held down by zombie-like creatures, his shirt pushed up, and being straddled by a young woman who was a mix of both decaying and alive with grey skin and black markings all over her face, dressed in torn cloth.

Well, it had certainly been a day of walking in on the unexpected. First it had been walking into the dig site to find her ex-husband already there, then it had been the morgue only to find her dead ex-husband very much alive and completely naked. Now this. She wasn't sure which was stranger.

"Ellie!" cried Nick. "Run! Run!"

Finally she snapped from her trace, just as the young woman - Princess Ahmanet - came charging towards her. She grabbed Elerie by the neck in an iron grip, slamming her against the wall before leaning her face close to hers, aiming to - kiss her?

The princess gave an un-human wail when Elerie took her pocket knife and stabbed her. She had barely realized she had pulled it out of her pocket and flicked it open and was almost just as surprised as Ahmanet.

Now enraged, Ahmanet struck Elerie across the face, sending her crashing into the pews just as Nick came at her from behind, stabbing her in the back with a dagger of some sort. He helped Elerie scramble to her feet.

"I think she was going to kiss me," she cried.

"More like kiss-kill you. Come on!"

 _Haha I love that scene when she (Jenny in the movie) walks in on him, too good! Thanks so much for reading, hope you enjoyed! :)_


	17. XV Elerie

Hello! Thank you so much for the reviews, they mean a lot and are always much appreciated! :) Here's the next chapter - enjoy!

XV. Elerie

They sprinted out of the church. As soon as they reached the church yard, both took off in different directions. She headed for the crash site - maybe there was a cleanup crew who could help - while he headed for an abandoned ambulance. She realized this just as he climbed in the truck and started it.

"Hey! Hey! Wait!" But he was already speeding away. "Nick! Nick! You son of a bitch!" So he was going to drag her all the way here and now just leave her? What a jackass.

She turned and started running for the crash site - only to be stopped by the mummy herself. Ahmanet stood a ways in front of her, amber eyes narrowed, slowly making her way towards Elerie, who quickly began stumbling back.

 _Vroom! Screech! Crash!_ The next thing she knew was the ambulance was back - and had driven right into Ahmanet, knocking the un-dead woman back into the stone wall of the church.

"Get in!" Nick shouted, breaking Elerie's stunned moment.

This time she just managed to haul herself inside the ambulance as he sped away again. "We're you just going to leave me?!"

"You saw that, right?"

"You were, weren't you?!"

"You saw it right?!"

"I can't un-see it! You were going to leave me!"

"Oh like you left me?"

"What?"

" _You_ divorced _me_?"

She gawked at him. "Really Nick, seriously?! You want to do this now, now of all times? Are you serious!? You're unbelievable - AH!" She was cut off then when in his hasty driving he lurched the ambulance forward sharply, and she slammed against her seat. "You bastard!"

They sped along a forest road. "Where are we going?" she demanded.

"Away. From. Here. There's a highway up ahead."

"How do you know?"

"I just know! Here-" He tossed something into her lap. A dark dagger with a long, curved blade.

"Oh my God, oh my God - do you know what this is?" she gasped.

"The Dagger of Set."

"Yes-"

"She was gonna drive that thing right through me."

"The stone, it is missing."

"Yeah that seemed to really piss her off."

A hand flew to her mouth. "Oh my God, it's real! We were right!" She was practically bouncing in her seat.

"Ellie could you please celebrate later!"

"This is my life's work!"

"You didn't almost die cause of it! How was it in that statue?"

"What do you mean?"

"She smashed off the head of one of the statues and the dagger was inside."

"It could have been a reliquary. Crusaders would use them to hide holy relics. But she knew it was there."

"Wait - are you saying she brought the plane down there on purpose?"

"That's why she wanted you to come to the church."

"I told you I wanted to go to the church. I wanted to see, see her-"

"See her corpse." There was a pause. "Oh God - Nick, she's in your head."

"What?" he scoffed. "That's ridiculous. She is not in my-"

 _SCREECH!_ This time, she was almost given whiplash again as he slammed on the breaks. "Bloody hell..." But when she looked to see what that was all about, she found that they were right back where they started: the church. And there was Ahmanet, not even baring a scratch.

"I drove right back to her," Nick whispered. "Oh God she's in my head."

"Back! Back! Back!" Elerie practically screamed as the mummy started making her way towards them. Nick threw the ambulance in reverse, only to crash into the stone wall surrounding the church before speeding off. Soon they were back on the dirt road racing through the trees.

"She's in my head, she's in my head. Oh my God, she's in my head," Nick kept mumbling.

"Move over-" Elerie began to climb over Nick, shoving him out of the way.

"Wh-what are you doing?!"

"She's in your head, I'm not letting you drive us back to her again!" She shoved him over into the passenger side and took the wheel herself.

Both began frantically screaming then when one of the mummy-zombie things smashed through the windshield, it's snarling face close to hers. The other smashed through the passenger window, clawing at Nick.

She kicked her leg out and felt her foot come in contact with something. She kept kicking.

"Ah that's my face! That's my face! That's MY FACE!" Nick yelled.

"Sorry!"

"Ah - a little help here!" Nick cried, trying to get rid of both attacking creatures.

"I'm driving! Get rid of them! AH!" One of the creatures grabbed her arm and tried to drag her out the smashed windshield. She grabbed onto the seat belt before being wrenched free of the ambulance and managed to kick off the zombie-mummy, but it tried clawing its way back up the front of the truck.

"Buckle up." Nick clicked her seat belt into place.

He didn't do the same for himself though so when the creatures attacked again and she lost control of the ambulance, sending it rolling off the road, Nick went flying as the truck flipped and turned off the road and down a hill. Elerie, as she was buckled in, stayed inside, but was no less thrashed around.

At last, the ambulance stopped rolling. Both groaned as they tried to recover from that ordeal.

"Ellie!" Nick stumbled to his feet, rushing over to her. The ambulance had landed upside down. She managed to unbuckle herself so she was no longer dangling upside down herself.

Then they saw her, emerging through the trees: Ahmanet. She had found them again.

 _Haha! Hope you enjoyed, thanks so much for reading! (and yay, we finally got to meet Ahmanet :)_


	18. XVI Elerie

Hello! Here's the next chapter - enjoy!

XVI. Elerie

Now pissed off himself, Nick grabbed a large branch and approached the mummy.

"Get her Nick!" Elerie cheered him on. "Kick her ass!"

Before he could barely take a swing at her, Ahmanet smashed the branch from his hands and hit him, sending him flying up, up, up through the trees. He landed in front of Elerie hard on his stomach.

Everything that happened next was a blur: Ahmanet went for Elerie again, only to be struck through by - a harpoon? That's what it looked like anyway. People dressed in black and armed with similar weapons poured through the trees, all led by Jenny. Elerie was pulled gently from the ambulance by some of the newcomers while the rest surrounded and restrained the mummy.

"Elerie!" Jenny rushed over. "Don't worry, you're safe now."

* * *

The people in black took them in trucks to London.

"Are you a spy?" Elerie asked from the back seat of one of the trucks. Jenny had changed into all black, including a leather jacket and tall boots, and had pulled her hair back in a ponytail.

"We'll explain when we get there," Jenny assured her.

"Where's, 'there'?"

Jenny didn't respond but Elerie was answered a few minutes later when they pulled up behind the Natural History Museum.

"Work?" Still, she received no response but was guided inside and into an elevator. One of the agents pressed the button, and they went down, down, down the shaft. Would they ever stop? How far did it go?

Finally the doors slid open to reveal some sort of lab housing a bunch of well, strange artifacts. She looked around her. "Where are we, what is this place?"

"Prodigium."

"'Prodigium'?"

"Yes, from Latin."

Suddenly, something clicked. "This is your department of 'special collections'?"

Jenny nodded. "Yes."

Another agent came over to them then. "Henry will see her now."

"Thank you, Malik." Jenny nodded. Then she gestured for Elerie to follow them down a long, dark hall.

"So now where are we going?"

"To meet with my boss, Dr. Jekyll. Don't worry, he has everything sorted out. "

"Jekyll?" Elerie scoffed. "Yeah, Jekyll, I'm sure."

She was led into a wide, bright, neatly-kept office, already occupied by a man in a suit.

"Ah, Ms. Taylor." The man approached her and smiled. "A pleasure to finally meet you. Jennifer has told me much about you."

"Apparently..." She shook his hand.

"Welcome to Prodigium. I am Doctor Henry Jekyll."

"Jekyll? Like the book?"

To this, he chuckled. "Perhaps. Can we get you anything? Are you hungry, thirsty?"

"I'm fine, but thanks. Just still a little shaken from being attacked by a mummy."

"Ah yes, we will get to that." He crossed the room to stand by his desk. "Ms. Taylor, do you know much about your ancestry?"

A strange question. She shrugged. "We're from the lowlands, our clan. Don't know much else."

He arranged something on his desk, not looking at her as he spoke. "And how about the trials?"

"I'm sorry?"

"The witch trials, and hunts."

"Uh, um..."

"Did you know that Scotland had some of the worst witch panics?"

"I do, yes."

"Well, we have evidence to believe that you are a descendant of a very prominent coven of witches from Scotland, dating back to the seventeenth century."

"You have evidence... To believe?"

"Yes." He nodded and gave her a small smile.

"You have evidence - evidence of my ancestry?" What the hell? "I-I'm sorry, what does this have to do with anything?"

"Yes, of course, you're right. Forgive me for jumping ahead." He spread his arms out, looking around the room, almost in awe. "This is Prodigium, Ms. Taylor. From the Latin, _monstrum vel prodigium. '_ A Warning of Monsters.'"

"Okay..."

"We deal with items and arifacts of the supernatural, myth, legend, magic. Now back to your ancestors - makes sense, though. Jennifer tells me that you have a great interest in magic and the supernatural, yes?"

She crossed her arms. "What else has _Jennifer_ told you?"

"Just about your search for Princess Ahmanet. And your connection to Mr. Morton."

"Connection." To this, she chuckled. "That's one way of putting it."

"Yes. I understand that you were married?"

"Divorced now." Wait, Nick... "Nick - where is he?"

"He is here as well."

"Where?"

"Here, safe..." So vague. What the actual hell was going on? "Ms. Taylor, I'm afraid that Sergeant Morton has been - well, cursed."

"Cursed?"

"Yes, cursed."

Silence, she waiting for a further explanation, one which she did not receive. "Okay... And? How? Why?" she prompted.

"Please have a seat, Ms. Taylor." He sat at his desk, gesturing to the chair in front of it, Jenny and Malik standing, almost guard-like, off to the side. Elerie remained standing, arms crossed, and faced the man before her, this Dr. Jekyll fellow.

"As you are aware, it was him who severed the barrier chain in the tomb, him who freed Princess Ahmanet and unleashed her powers."

"Yeah. I told him not to touch anything, but does he listen? 'Course not."

"Stubborn fellow?"

"You have no idea."

"Well, continuing, as he was the one who freed her, Ahmanet formed some sort of connection with him, cursing him."

She thought for a moment. "He has been acting rather strangely - and I mean more than usual. And back at the church, she was in his head - she made him come right back to her."

Jekyll nodded. "Exactly."

Now she sat down. "So he's cursed by a five-thousand-year-old mummy?"

"I'm afraid so, Ms. Taylor. But do not worry," he quickly added. "We are doing everything we can to figure out a way to lift this curse."

"You are?"

"Yes. So do not worry about your former husband. He will be well taken care of."

She shook her head. "And what have I got to do with all this?"

"Well aside from your connection to the now unfortunately cursed Mr. Morton - we were actually hoping to have this meeting sooner, but then the opportunity for the tomb excavation arose, and now all this. So I am afraid it is all happening at once."

"You wanted to meet with me before?"

"Yes."

"Why? About what?"

"Ah and you see, Ms. Taylor, that is what brings us right back to your family, your bloodline: that of witches, powerful ones. Many burned at the stake for their actions, but some able to escape and survive. And that powerful bloodline continued through the centuries, the generations, and therefore to you." He gestured to her. "You have always held a belief in magic and the unknown beyond, Ms. Taylor. Where do you think that belief comes from?"

"H-how do you know all this?"

"Well, I asked Jennifer, as your friend and collegue to-"

"You've been monitoring me?" She turned on her friend. "What the hell?!"

"Elerie I-"

"Please Jennifer-" Jekyll held up a hand to silence her. "There will be time for further explanation later." He turned back to a now fuming Elerie. "Now Ms. Taylor I realize that this will be a lot for you to take at once-" To this, she scoffed. "-On top of this whole curse business. But I'm here to offer you a place amongst us here at Prodigium, a safe place for you to learn and study."

"Wait, are you offering me a job?"

"You could say that, yes, Ms. Taylor."

She gawked at him. "So let me get this straight: you're offering me a job at this 'magic lab' of yours."

"Yes."

"Casue I'm a witch."

"Yes."

"And my ex-husband's been cursed by a mummy."

"Precisely."

There was a moment of silence before she jumped to her feet and stormed from the room.

 _Wow time sure flies! Sorry guys! Hope this longer chapter with some revealed secrets made up for the delay :) Thanks so much for reading!_


	19. XVII Elerie

Sorry for the wait, thank you for your patience! Onto the chapter!

XVII. Elerie

"Elerie wait, please, let me explain - El-" Jenny followed her friend and colleague as she stormed out of Jekyll's office.

"Yeah an explanation would be nice." She stopped so abruptly that Jenny almost crashed into her.

They were cut off as two agents brought Nick through, who was wrapped up in a straitjacket. He and Elerie met eyes.

"Where are they taking him?" she asked once the agents and Nick had disappeared.

"To see Henry. He'll be safe, I promise."

Elerie only scoffed.

"Look, when Henry came to me I took the job because we had a common interest," Jenny tried to explain.

"So you're using each other."

"And now she's using him," Jenny mumbled. "Oh don't look at me like that. What was I supposed to say? Would you have even believed me?"

"Jenny, I've been searching for proof of this stuff my whole life, only to have everyone tell me I'm loony, including my husband, and now it's been going on right below my feet."

A few minutes later, Nick emerged from the office, no longer in the straitjacket, followed closely by Jekyll and Malik.

"Ellie," he cried. "Are you okay?" She looked pretty shaken.

"Yeah, I-I'm alright," she said softly. "You?"

"Okay."

Jekyll led them into a large labratory. At the centre was Ahmanet, chained up.

"My God," Elerie gasped.

"Forgive the state of things," Jekyll said. "We had very little time to prepare for our guest." He gestured to Ahmanet. "And only the information Jennifer provided to go on. It's not an exact science, this business."

Nick looked around in utter confusion. "A-and the business being?"

"Yes, and a straight answer this time would be nice," added Elerie.

"Evil, Mr. Morton, Ms. Taylor. Recognize, contain, examine, destroy." He turned to look back at the mummy in awe. "She is by far the most ancient we have ever encountered." The princess only stared back, shivering violently.

"What are you doing to her?"

"Embalming her with mercury," Jekyll replied simply. "At minus thirty-eight degrees the mercury in her veins will solidify and she should be safe for dissection then."

At this, Jenny looked up. "Dissection? You said that we'd study her."

"Yes, by dissection."

"But she's a living witness to a history that we barely know."

"Perhaps, but she's also a threat, Jennifer."

"Wait, wait, hold on, hold on. So where does that leave me?" Nick asked.

"Cursed, Mr. Morton," Jekyll said, also lightly, as though it were the most common thing in the world. "You have been selected as the vessel for the ultimate evil. And we are the only ones who can rectify that."

Ahmanet began speaking then, in Ancient Egyptian. " _You cannot change your fate_." Now all eyes were on her. " _The curse will never be broken_."

Now Nick, trance-like almost, slowly made his way towards her.

" _My chosen was murdered. You will take his place."_

Nick shocked them all then by answering in the same language. " _But if you chose him, why were you going to kill him_?"

Elerie's eyebrows shot up into her hairline. She could speak some Ancient Egyptian, having studied it for a long time, and could understand the basis of their conversation. Now hearing Nick speak it with ease, she was impressed, even if it was just in his cursed state. She found it... Well, to be perfectly honest, sexy.

Oh God.

Must be this whole curse thing messing with her too.

" _I was not going to kill him_ ," Ahmanet explained. "I was going to give him eternal life. Make him a living god." Now she finished in English.

Nick shook his head and now spoke in English too. "You murdered your father."

"I loved my father, with all my heart. I only wanted his love in return."

"You killed his wife. Their child."

Her jaw tightened. "They were - different times." Her captivating voice filled the cold chamber. As she spoke, the world around them faded away to a desert scene. It were as though her voice was casting the vision. "The Day of Awakening will soon be upon us... You will become Set... The world will fall to your desire... You will have power over life, over death... And you will have me... I will be your queen... Just give in..."

The scene now changed to Nick and Ahmanet in bed together, Elerie, Jenny, and Jekyll still standing off to the side.

"Nick," hissed Elerie. "Nick, she's in your head again, she's using you - don't give in-"

He turned his head to look at her, but Ahmanet reached out and turned it back to look at her. "They will kill you, just as they killed my chosen before you," she whispered.

Elerie made to move forward, but was held back by Jekyll.

Suddenly, Ahmanet let out an agonizing scream that shook the whole chamber. Everyone buckled over, hands pressed firmly over their ears to try and drown out the sound.

"Stop it! Stop it! Just stop!" Nick yelled at the agents, seeing how they were harming her. She collapsed back in a crumpled ball on the cold iron floor. Even he seemed hurt by it, feeling her pain through their connection from the curse.

Jekyll only stared. "Fascinating," he breathed.

"What the hell - what kind of sick experiment are you running?" cried Elerie. "She's a human!"

"But she is not, Ms. Taylor. Not anymore. She's a monster."

 _Haha, it could be the curse Ellie, that or you're still in love with him ;) Sorry again for the late update - time has just been flying by and I didn't realize how long it had been since I last updated! Here you are - we're getting close to the chase scene in London, which is one of my favourite scenes in the movie! Thanks so much for reading, hope you enjoyed! :)_


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